This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/971,198, filed Oct. 22, 2004. The invention relates to an aircraft accommodation unit with a deployable bed. The invention has particular application in first class cabins of long-haul passenger aircraft, but has utility in any form of transportation where both seating and seating facilities would be necessary or desirable. Thus, while the invention is disclosed for the purpose of illustration with reference to aircraft seating, the invention is not so limited.
Long-haul aircraft flights regularly fly non-stop to destinations 12-18 hours or more away from the origination point. At present, first class cabins provide various forms of “sleeper seats”, meaning that the seat back reclines to the point where the seat occupant is able to attain a prone or nearly-prone position. In some cases the seats form a horizontal sleeping surface, and in other cases the head end of the reclined seat is raised to some degree above the foot end. However, there are deficiencies in this arrangement, including the fact that the seat cushions are typically firmer than would be ideal for a sleeping mattress, and the fact that the seat bottoms and seat backs that make up the “bed” in the reclined position are not flat, but may have side bolsters, seams and/or tufting that provide significant comfort to the seat occupant when seated, but interfere with the ability of the seat occupant to assume a comfortable prone position.
In addition, most such reclining seats do not provide any significant degree of privacy—usually a shell that may screen the head and shoulders, or a curtain.
Other long-haul systems provide sleeper berths that are separate from and in a different location from the seating area, in a manner similar to railway berthing arrangements. These systems require significant additional space and required the passenger to transit between a seating area and a sleeping area.
For this reason, there is a need for an individual “suite” for each passenger that includes both a seat and a bed, together with other amenities normally found in first class cabins, such as ottomans and the like.